Blackwater Distillery, based in West Waterford, was one of just five companies worldwide short-listed for the International Gin Producer of the Year Award at the International Wine and Spirits Competition (IWSC), held in London recently. The annual IWSC awards are judged by industry professionals and Blackwater is the first Irish distillery to rate so highly…
Tones that are tender
Could I find again the woodland Where I loved to lie and dream, While Dragon flies were dancing To the rippling of the stream. (“Retrospection” by Percy French) In the 1960s when my contemporaries were listening to Radio Luxemburg and singing (and talking about) “a Whiter Shade of Pale,” “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” and…
Merlins Rest pub provides award-winning food and drink
On the corner of East Lake St. and 36th Ave. sits the Celtic pub, Merlins Rest, in the charming Longfellow neighborhood. It is about a mile west of the Mississippi River and only 10 minutes from Minneapolis, St. Paul and Bloomington. Merlins is known for their unique and delicious menu items and a large selection…
Extra, Extra: The newsies stop the world
Grab your newsboy hat and get yourself to the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre to see Disney’s Newsies. Their main stage can barely hold all the dancing, singing and excitement of this play, not to forget the romance and comedy and family friendly to boot. Also, you may learn something as this remarkable play is all the…
Trivia
OK, so you think your Irish and you think you know a thing or two about being Irish. Now let’s see what you know by answering these trivia questions about the Irish in America. 1. According to the 1980 U.S. census, how many Americans claim Irish ancestry, either 100% or just part? a. Over 10…
Inheritance Tax has forced straight Irishman to marry
Two straight Irishmen have announced their intention to marry in an effort to avoid Ireland’s large inheritance tax. Eighty-five-year-old Matt Murphy and his best friend and care giver, Michael O’- Sullivan, have gotten married even though they are not gay. The reason is because of the high inheritance tax on a single person. They have…
Sr. Rosanne Fox comforted the afflicted and afflicted the comfortable
Downtown parishes, like the Church of the Assumption in St. Paul and St. Olaf in Minneapolis have a special ministry as those who need the basics; food, clothing and shelter, surround them. To their credit these churches respond commendably. Sr. Rosanne Fox, CSJ, was the designated hitter for this important ministry at St. Olaf and…
Séamus Reports
Irish Music and Dance Association is the sponsor of the IMDA Music Workshop Tent at Irish Fair of Minnesota with workshops offered on Saturday and Sunday. Check out the schedule on the Irish Fair pull-out section of The Irish Gazette. IMDA will make a special presentation of the Story of the San Patricios by Andale…
TRAGEDY – Last in a three-part series
Two quotes to begin. The first by Parnell in 1885: “No man has the right to fix the boundary to the march of a Nation. No man has the right to say to his country: Thus far shalt thou go and no further.” The second attributed to Croesus, King of the Lydians, somewhere around 546…
Exploring the mysteries of Ireland
I am a great believer in invitations, particularly ones that take us out of our ordinary and habitual way of perceiving the world and our connection to it. Ireland — its landscape, history, people, culture, and flora and fauna — extends a particularly strong invitation that has called to me so thoroughly and repeatedly through…